Image via Cooper Neill/Getty Images
By Lucas Kochevar The Lions travel to San Francisco for a chance to clinch their first ever Super Bowl berth. It’ll be the biggest game in Lions history. They take on the 49ers, who squeaked by the Packers last week. San Francisco’s defense is very talented, but it’ll be the Lions defense that has to step up and slow down Brock Purdy and co. The Lions defense has been privy to collapsing this season, but now is the time they need to step up. They face one of the hardest tests of their season in facing the 49ers, but is this the same 49ers team that’s been surging all season long? It’s up in the air with Deebo Samuel’s status for Sunday. He’s likely going to play through injury, but it’s clear that he's a key cog in the 49ers offense. The 49ers are uber talented across the board with Brandon Aiyuk, George Kittle and, of course, Christian McCaffery. There’s still a difference in this team without Samuel. He’s a human joystick and plays the role of both wide receiver and running back as good as anyone in the league. If he’s compromised in any way, the Lions will be thankful. The Lions defense is a team that lives and dies with Aidan Hutchinson. The former second overall pick has been a culture changer for the defense with his attitude and play style. Although he’s the star, the rest of the defensive line will be key in slowing down the 49ers front. John Cominsky and Benito Jones will have to do their job in run support to force Purdy to throw the ball. Purdy is a good quarterback, but he’s far from perfect. It makes sense given he’s a second year starter still, but people have the expectation for him to be the perfect distributor in the Shannahan system. If you watched his last game, it’s clear he’s not at the level he needs to be. The Lions can take advantage of this inexperience and force him to beat them. Now fired-DC Joe Barry mixed up looks against the 49ers and it forced Purdy to make his best throws at the end. He made those throws and the 49ers won the game, but there could be a blueprint. The bend-don’t break attitude of this Lions defense will be key on third down. The 49ers rank third in third down offense (48.72% conversion rate) while the Lions rank 12th in third down defense (37.1%). The Lions biggest struggles will be holding the 49ers in the red zone as they allow over 60% success rate. The Lions will need everyone rowing the boat in the same direction in order to win on the road. The NFC title is a win away from the underdog Lions, but they'll get the 49ers best shot as the 49ers are looking to prove they should've made it last season, before they lost all their quarterbacks due to injury. This will be a battle of wills between two teams with a lot to prove.
2 Comments
BK Stylw
1/27/2024 05:07:02 am
Hey :LK Sports… can the Lions finally get back to a championship…it’s only been since 1957..??? We will see…!!!!
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BK Style
2/1/2024 10:41:14 am
Hey LKSports…I hear Quinn is HC of Redskins…they have a top pick…we’ll see what happens…
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Lucas KochevarI love sports and I'm a local fan of the Falcons, Hawks, and Braves. You can find my quick thoughts and more on my twitter @lucaswkochevar |